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Gremlins
200px|thumb|right|Fig 1.A: Myrna Balgar, a Gremlin. Gremlins are a diminutive demihuman race that only recently migrated to Fontraile - specifically within the last 2 decades. Dedicated scavengers and salvagers, they favor dry, arid climates and tend to comb the wastes looking for scrap metal, machinery, and electronics. If they find something of value or interest, it's often loaded up on large, scratch-built trucks and brought back to their settlements, often simply referred to as "the hollows" for refurbishing and later trade. Gremlins meet in gigantic "swap meets" where they exchange information and tech, and will openly engage in trade with other races as well, especially in the frontier in northern Renalia. They'll often travel in large caravans to nearby friendly settlements to trade bits of tech and equipment - often referred to as "shinies" by Gremlins, in exchange for food, medical supplies, and other essentials. Trade within the hollow is usually conducted via barter, though a number of Gremlins have increasingly taken to using local currency, especially Renalian Credits and Paramisian Marks, and many Gremlins see acquisition of "shinies" as being of paramount importance. Their comparatively inoffensive nature and propensity for trade means they are often an accepted, if strange, presence within Renalian frontier settlements. Each Gremlin settlement values different materials and items, so while one settlement may value chemical compounds and plastics, another may value scrap electronics and circuitry, so what actually constitutes suitable "shinies" can vary dramatically depending on individual Gremlin settlements. Appearance As a demihuman race, Gremlins have characteristics of both humans and dogs. Their most notable canine traits (aside from more pronounced canines) are their eye coloration, ears, and tail. Some have paw-like hands or feet, though this is rarer. Gremlins are rarely taller than 4 feet or so in adulthood and often have small but tough builds, though many exceptions exist. Adult Gremlins are often around 100 pounds, with males slightly taller and heavier than females. They are noted for their excellent hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity. At any given time, most of them are covered in soot or oil and often wear either simple worksuits (when at home) or scratch-built environment suits (when out in Renalia's hinterlands). Gremlin clothing is often built as much for form as it is function; goggles are worn as headbands and are fully functional in emergencies or even for welding, and clothes have plenty of pockets for tools, scrap, snacks, and "shinies." Gremlins as old as 170 years old have been encountered, but their lives often end much sooner due to unclean living or "accidents" involving scavenged technology. A Gremlin reaches maturity in about 14 years. Noteworthy Attributes Gremlins, as a race, are mechanical savants, and they are insatiable learners; if allowed, a Gremlin will attempt to find out absolutely everything she can find out about everything, be it a mechanical part or an alchemical compound; as such, they often are skilled laborers, excellent engineers, and surprisingly adroit combat medics. They greatly enjoy using scavenged tech both in their home lives and in combat, and each encounter is a wonderful opportunity for a Gremlin to test whatever custom scratch-built weaponry and hardware they built themselves. These devices tend to show all the hallmarks of the Gremlins' patchwork craftsmanship; when they work, they work well, and when they don't, they tend to explode, much to the discomfort of anyone nearby. Everything from makeshift energy weapons and robots to scratch-built mechanized armatures see use in Gremlin investigative teams. Gremlins are fascinated by cybernetics and replacement limbs to make up for injuries, albeit scratch-built ones, are common in their settlements. Gremlins get their namesake from their skill at taking things apart and putting them back together, often with spare parts left over. Given their general aptitude for electronic devices, they often can get at least a grasp of how the thing works after rebuilding it several times, though getting a Gremlin to actually explain this knowledge to someone else is often a nightmarish endeavor ("I start by poking the silver bit with a probe to shut it down and then turn the sparkly part here, that turns the entire thing off"). This skill with reverse-engineering also applies on the rare occasions Gremlins go to war; they often do so frighteningly efficiently and completely indirectly through acts of sabotage. During one notorious conflict with Black Fang, a Gremlin settlement successfully sabotaged a series of transport aircraft, causing them to catastrophically fail almost a month later. Origin As a demihuman race, Gremlins are technically genetically compatible with humans, though with a lowered rate of fertility. Their skittish nature ironically means that many tend to keep to their own company. Not much is known about where they came from; some evidence suggests they are an engineered race, possibly one that came about by early attempts to crossbreed humans and gnolls, but this doesn't account for their small size or preferred homeland in the Cyrellian Salt Flats near Eulitracia. It's believed that Gremlins emigrated to Renalia because of how similar the Ashalaren Wastes is to their original homeland. While most races would balk at the possibility of living in an area wracked by dust storms and and requiring respirators for prolonged action outside, Gremlins often can hardly fathom living anywhere else. Their settlements are often tunneled deep into natural cave networks that they then proceed to fortify, modify, and expand until it resembles a sprawling shanty town of scrap metal and rock, often with a cieling so low that full-grown humans would have to stoop to not bonk their heads on the ceilings. Entire Gremlin Clans, often numbering over a hundred individuals, live in each hollow. The inside of each one is a confusing network of tunnels, sleeping and eating alcoves, workbenches, vehicle, and repair bays, junk, and fully-functional hardware being prepped for later trade. Since the Gremlins don't have ready supplies of spare parts, the entire hollow is often kept powered through a series of jury-rigged repairs which could potentially overload at any time, leaving a third or more of the place without power. Culture Gremlin culture centers around mercantilism, salvage, and personal creativity. Each Gremlin tends to value, above all else, the chance to create their own unique creations, above and beyond their peers, to stake out strange new lands to call home, and to retire successful with all the "shinies" they can acquire. Gremlin adeventurers who get over their race's textbook shyness quickly can become a major boon to any team that has them, as the Gremlin will usually look at them as about as close to her as a family unit. Gremlins rely on numbers and artifice for defense against their enemies. They often leave the safety of the hollow in order to seek out scrap and salvage, often working alongside salvaged robots or equipment in order to keep the others safe. Old structures like some of Renalia's decommissioned facilities are absolutely irresistable to Gremlins, which often raid them for parts, or attempt to refubish them into new settlements. While normally quite easily startled, inveterate Gremlin explorers often are much more rough-and-tumble, both to impress their peers in the hollow and to get the highest risk of finding suitable rewards.